Just got a Chromebook. I'm wondering about security. Basically it can't be hacked. Can't do a whole of downloading but the trade off of no viruses and hacking makes it great as all I need is to browse. What I'm wondering is whether other sites I visit can be hacked. Say like my bank on line or any other site, can that still be hacked.

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Edited by: tyrone, Apr 13th, 2014 @ 5:46 pm

yeah, other sites can be hacked, but after the whole thing about the heartbleed bug, i think you're gonna see a lot of sites bulk up their security measures. i don't think you're in any more danger than the rest of us would be in that regard as a result.

does that answer your question?

Yes, thank you. How about if I'm on wifi, say at Starbucks? Can someone get through that way?

i don't think your computer is going to get hacked directly that way. it might be possible, but i've never heard of it happening.

can anyone else back me up on that?

ty a lot for help.

hacked from my own wifi
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Edited by: tyrone, Apr 14th, 2014 @ 12:20 am

Heartbleed is a server end exploit, where hackers can ride the server, and find stored accounts and passwords, as well as detect when a user changes their password.
In short, it isn't a direct attack on your computers data, but on online locations that you may have data stored. (Such as your ISP, or your bank.)

Viruses are always a possibility, however, due to the nature of the Chromebook's OS, they are far more difficult to produce, and fewer in numbers.

I think your only real concerns may be Sidejacking, In/out Protocol interceptions, and Network packet sniffing.
You might have a look for a firewall app to deal with these, if they are a common problem in your area,
(For these, you need to be within WiFi range of the target computer that you are attacking.)

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Edited by: The_Shadow, Apr 13th, 2014 @ 11:16 pm

Appreciate responses here.

Using any operating system other than Windows improves security on your end, since most (if not all) hackers and distributors of malware are going to focus on exploiting the operating systems that are most widely used. Chromebooks are relatively secure in that respect, although this protection doesn't extend to data sent to someone else (like a bank).

A quick note about Wi-Fi security: It's not difficult to intercept anything that's transmitted in plaintext through a wireless network. Most sites encrypt things like passwords and PINs, but since encryption is never failsafe, I would recommend against doing things like banking on a public wireless network, such as at a Starbucks or an airport. Also, people have used variations on the rogue access point to spoof legitimate hotspots and steal data, so public networks should never be used for sensitive transactions.

Google chromebook says they encrypt all saved passwords on its default settings. Does that mean my password to a site i visit frequently, say a bank or sportsbook is encrypted? How much safer does that make things? Sorry for the trouble but I'm thinking I'll be using a public wifi down the road and want to understand my vulerabilites.